Methods and systems related to a remote tamper detection

ABSTRACT

Remote tamper detection, some example embodiment methods including: receiving signals indicative of a location, the receiving by a first device coupled to an asset; periodically sending a signal of operability from the first device to a second device, the second device coupled to the asset, and the second device configured to selectively disable the asset; receiving a first command from a remote operations center, the receiving by the first device; sending a second command from the first device to the second device, wherein the second command is sent responsive to the receiving of the first command; disabling the asset by the second device when receipt of the signal of operability has ceased or the second command is a disable command; and issuing from the first device an indication of the location of the first device, the issuing from the first device by a wireless transmission to the remote operations center.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No.14/637,000 titled “Methods and Systems Related to a Remote TamperDetection,” filed Mar. 3, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 13/828,832 titled “Methods and Systems Related toRemote Tamper Detection,” filed Mar. 14, 2013 (now U.S. Pat. No.9,035,756), both of which are incorporated herein by reference as ifreproduced in full below.

BACKGROUND

In some situations, it is desirable to track the location of an asset. Adevice may be coupled to the asset to communicate location informationto an operations center. It may be beneficial for the device to includetamper detection capabilities in case someone tries to disable or removethe device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a detailed description of exemplary embodiments, reference will nowbe made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows, in block diagram form, a system in accordance with atleast some embodiments;

FIG. 2 shows, in block diagram form, a system in accordance with atleast some embodiments;

FIG. 3 shows, in block diagram form, a system in accordance with atleast some embodiments;

FIG. 4 shows, in block diagram form, a computer system in accordancewith at least some embodiments; and

FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram depicting an overall method in accordancewith at least some embodiments.

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram depicting an overall method in accordancewith at least some embodiments.

FIG. 7 shows a flow diagram depicting an overall method in accordancewith at least some embodiments.

NOTATION AND NOMENCLATURE

Certain terms are used throughout the following description and claimsto refer to particular system components. As one skilled in the art willappreciate, different companies may refer to a component and/or methodby different names. This document does not intend to distinguish betweencomponents and/or methods that differ in name but not in function.

In the following discussion and in the claims, the terms “including” and“comprising” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should beinterpreted to mean “including, but not limited to . . . .” Also, theterm “couple” or “couples” is intended to mean either an indirect ordirect connection. Thus, if a first device couples to a second devicethat connection may be through a direct connection or through anindirect connection via other devices and connections.

“Remote” shall mean one kilometer or more.

“Supercapacitor” shall mean one or more electrical components, eitheralone or in parallel having a capacitance density of at least 3.0millifarads per cubic millimeter (mF/mm³).

“Periodically,” in reference to sending a signal, shall mean a recurringaction, but shall not require each action to occur at equal intervals oftime.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following discussion is directed to various embodiments of theinvention. Although one or more of these embodiments may be preferred,the embodiments disclosed should not be interpreted, or otherwise used,as limiting the scope of the disclosure, including the claims. Inaddition, one skilled in the art will understand that the followingdescription has broad application, and the discussion of any embodimentis meant only to be exemplary of that embodiment, and not intended tointimate that the scope of the disclosure, including the claims, islimited to that embodiment.

Various embodiments are directed to systems and methods of detectingtampering of at least one onboard device coupled to a vehicle. Inparticular, two devices installed within a vehicle are communicativelylinked, and if the link is determined to have been improperly broken,alerts and/or actions are subsequently taken. The developmental contextis detecting tampering with at least one onboard device used to aid inensuring payment on a vehicle loan, and thus the specification will bebased on the development context; however, the developmental contextshall not be read as a limitation as to the applicability of the variousembodiments, as the methods described herein may apply to other tamperdetecting scenarios for other mobile and non-mobile assets. Thespecification first turns to a high level system overview.

FIG. 1 shows, in block diagram form, a system in accordance with atleast some embodiments. In particular, the system comprises anoperations center 100 communicatively coupled to a vehicle 114 by way ofa wireless network 110. The operations center 100 comprises a processor102. In some embodiments, the processor 102 may be a stand-alonecomputer system, or the processor may comprise a plurality of computersystems communicatively coupled and performing the functions of theoperations center 100, the functions discussed more thoroughly below.The processor 102 may couple to an administrative user interface 104.The administrative user interface 104 may enable an administrative agent106 to control or configure the operation of the system.

In one embodiment, in order to communicate with vehicle 114, theoperations center 100 may further comprise a network interface 108communicatively coupled to the processor 102. By way of the networkinterface 108, the processor 102, and any programs executing thereon,may communicate with vehicle 114, such as by wireless network 110.Wireless network 110 is illustrative of any suitable communicationsnetwork, such as a cellular network, a Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi)network, satellite communication network, or other mechanism, orcombinations of mechanisms, for transmitting information between theoperations center 100 and the vehicle 114.

In accordance with at least some embodiments, the operations center 100is remotely located from the vehicle 114. In some cases, the operationscenter 100 and vehicle 114 may be located within the same city or state.In other cases, the operations center 100 may be many hundreds orthousands of miles from vehicle 114, and thus the illustrative wirelessnetwork 110 may span several different types of communication networks.

Still referring to FIG. 1, the system further comprises a vehicle 114communicatively coupled to operations center 100 by way of theillustrative wireless network 110. The vehicle 114 may comprise at leasttwo onboard devices: illustrative onboard device 116 and illustrativeonboard device 118.

At least one, if not both, onboard devices may have location trackingcapabilities and/or vehicle disablement capabilities. Tracking thelocation of the vehicle may be beneficial in many situations. In oneexample situation, a lending institution financing a vehicle purchasemay be interested in the ability to track the vehicle in the eventtimely payments are not made on the loan. In particular, a driverpurchases vehicle 114 by receiving financing from a financinginstitution (e.g., a bank, a dealership). The financing institution mayrequest that onboard device 116 and/or 118 be installed within vehicle114 to track the location of the vehicle and/or to disable the vehiclein the event of a non-payment. A driver who has not made a payment, orwho is intending not to make a payment, and aware of the possibility ofvehicle disablement or repossession may attempt to tamper with thedisabling onboard device by removing it from the vehicle, or otherwisedisconnecting it. In order to prevent the driver from tampering with thedevice and thus circumventing the locating tracking and/or disablementcapabilities, onboard devices 116 and 118 are placed within differentareas of vehicle 114. For example, one onboard device may be located inan inconspicuous location, such as within an electrical compartmentunder the hood or within the luggage compartment, and the other onboarddevice may be located in a conspicuous location, such as under thedashboard of the vehicle. By placing the onboard devices in differentlocations, the driver may not be aware of a second device, or may havedifficulty locating the second device.

In order to detect tampering, the onboard devices communicate with eachother. In one embodiment, if one or both of the onboard devices detectsthere is no longer a communicative link between the devices, the lack ofa signal may indicate tampering. For example, onboard device 116 mayhave the capability of sending onboard device 118 a communicationrelated to operability. The onboard device 118 may have the capabilityof sending a return message to the onboard device 116 acknowledgingreceipt of the message of operability. In the alternative, onboarddevice 118 may send the message of operability, whereas onboard device116 may send the message acknowledging receipt. Thus, onboard devices116 and 118 have two-way communications capabilities with each other.

Upon receiving a message from the other onboard device, one or both ofthe onboard devices may take appropriate action, such as sending analert of tampering, sending an indication of last known location, and/ordisabling the vehicle. In order to more fully understand the methods andsystem associated with detecting tampering and taking subsequent action,the onboard devices will now be described in more detail.

FIG. 2 shows the overall system from FIG. 1 combined with a moredetailed depiction of example onboard device 116. In particular, onboarddevice 116 is configured to couple to vehicle 114. Onboard device 116may be defined as a separately enclosed device both mechanically andelectrically coupled to the vehicle 114 by way of connector 122. Thatis, connector 122 may provide mechanical support that holds the onboarddevice 116 in place, and/or by way of the connector 122 the onboarddevice 116 may electrically couple to other components of the vehicle114. For example, connector 122 may enable coupling between onboarddevice 116 to the onboard diagnostic version two (“OBD-II”) port, thusgiving onboard device 116 the ability to communicate with one or morecomponents of the vehicle 114 such as the vehicle computer (notspecifically shown), a starter solenoid relay connector, or fuel pumprelay connector.

Onboard device 116 may comprise a computer system 200. Although notspecifically shown, the onboard device computer system 200 may comprisea processor, where the processor may communicate with subsystems of thevehicle over the connector 122, such as a computer system (notspecifically shown) of the vehicle 114. The onboard device 116configured to couple to the OBD-II port may also have the ability toread or determine data associated with the vehicle 114, such asdetermining the identity of the vehicle (e.g., by reading the vehicleidentification number, hereafter “VIN”), and may also have the abilityto command the computer system of the vehicle to disable certainfunctions (e.g. starter circuit, spark ignition, fuel system) such thatthe vehicle 114 may be disabled at the command of the onboard device116, discussed in more detail below.

The onboard device 116 may further comprise a wireless network interface202 coupled to the computer system 200. By way of the wireless networkinterface 202, programs executed by the computer system 200 maycommunicate with other devices. In particular, the wireless networkinterface 202 may be the interface through which onboard device 116sends and receives signals of operability and communications to and fromonboard device 118. In some embodiments, the wireless network interface202 enables the computer system 200 to communicate with operationscenter 100 by way of a wireless transmission through the wirelessnetwork 110.

In addition to communications over the wireless network interface 202,onboard device 116 may comprise a speaker 204 which broadcasts soundsreceived by a microphone coupled to onboard device 118 (discussed morebelow). The sounds may be alerts indicative of a loss of power orcommunication, and thus may be indicative of tampering between thedevices.

Furthermore, onboard device 116 may comprise a disablement system 208that can selectively disable the vehicle 114. Disablement may take manyforms. For example, the onboard device may disable the vehicle by anysuitable technique, such as disabling the ability to crank the engine,disabling the spark ignition system, disabling the fuel pump relay,disabling by way of a starter interrupt, or a combination of disablingmechanisms. In other embodiments, the onboard device 116 may be a relayreplacement device. For example, a starter relay is a device within avehicle that, when activated, provides electrical current to thesolenoid of the starter. In the event communication is lost with onboarddevice 118, the onboard device 116 may not provide current to thesolenoid in spite of a command to do so. Thus, connector 122 may be arelay connector. In yet still other cases, the onboard device 116 may bea relay replacement device for any system that could disable the vehicle(e.g., either prevents the motor from starting, or prevents the motorfrom continuing to operate).

In addition, onboard device 116 may disable vehicle 114 on command fromthe operations center 100. In particular, the operations center maycomprise disablement services described above, and at the request of anyauthorized entity (e.g., an administrative agent, a lending institution,a dealership), vehicle 114 may be disabled. Onboard device 118 will nowbe discussed in more detail with reference to FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 shows the overall system with a more detailed depiction ofonboard device 118. In particular, onboard device 118 is configured tocouple to vehicle 114. Like onboard device 116, onboard device 118 is aseparately enclosed device distinct from onboard device 116. The onboarddevice 118 may be both mechanically and electrically coupled to thevehicle 114 by way of connector 124. That is, connector 124 may providemechanical support that holds the onboard device 118 in place, and/or byway of the connector 124 the onboard device 118 may electrically coupleto other components of the vehicle 114. For example, connector 122 mayenable coupling between onboard device 118 to the OBD-II port, thusgiving onboard device 118 the ability to communicate with one or morecomponents of the vehicle 114 such as the vehicle computer (notspecifically shown).

In one embodiment, the onboard device 118 further comprises a globalposition system (GPS) receiver 302 coupled to onboard computer system300. The GPS receiver 302 receives signals from an array of GPSsatellites orbiting the earth, and based on timing associated witharrival of those signals, a location of the onboard device 118 (and thusthe vehicle 114) can be determined. In some cases, the GPS receiver 302has sufficient functionality to calculate location, and thus the datapassed to computer system 300 may be a direct indication of location. Inother cases, the functionality to determine location may be sharedbetween the GPS receiver 302 and software executing on the processor102, by way of wireless network 110. That is, the GPS receiver 302 mayreceive the plurality of GPS signals and pass the information to aprogram on the processor 102, which program may then make thedetermination as to location of the onboard device 118, and thus thevehicle 114.

In one embodiment, the onboard device 118 tracks the vehicle with highprecision, thus one may be able to identify the street and block atwhich the vehicle is passing at any given time (though the onboarddevice 118 may not necessarily have or contain street level databases).In other cases, the onboard device 118 may act only to determine theend-points of each trip.

In other embodiments, location determination by the onboard device 118may be by mechanisms other than strictly GPS signals. For example, insome embodiments, the location may be fully or partially determinedbased on the signals of the wireless network interface 306. For example,location may be broadly determined by knowing the location of aparticular tower with which the wireless network interface 306 orcellular transceiver 304 is communicating. In other cases, location maybe determined by triangulation if multiple towers are in communicationrange of the wireless network interface 306. In some cases, thedetermination of location based on the wireless communication network isperformed by the processor of computer system 300 coupled to onboarddevice 118, but in other cases the tower information is sent to theoperations center 100 to perform the bulk of the location calculations.

In another embodiment, location tracking may be accomplished by way ofcellular signal triangulation. Still referring to FIG. 3, the onboarddevice 118 may further comprise a cellular transceiver 304, where thecellular transceiver 304 may communicate with nearby cellular towers inorder to determine location by way of cellular signal triangulation.

In some cases, the location determined by the onboard device 118 mayonly be a position on the face of the earth, for example, latitude andlongitude. The operations center 100, receiving a stream of locationsfrom the onboard device 118, may correlate to streets and addresses. Inother cases, the onboard device 118 may have sufficient memory andcomputing functionality to not only determine position in a latitude andlongitude sense, but also to correlate the positions to cities, streets,block numbers and addresses.

Although the onboard devices 116 and 118 have been described asdisablement capable and location tracking devices respectively, eitherdevice may be designed and implemented to achieve either of or bothfunctionalities.

Onboard devices 116 and 118 may communicate wirelessly with each otherby way of, in one example, wireless network interfaces 202 and 306,respectively. By way of wireless network interfaces 202 and 306,programs executed by the onboard device computer systems may communicatewith each other. For simplification purposes, the discussion will referto wireless network interface 306 coupled to onboard device 118;however, wireless network interface 202 may be configured and mayoperate in a similar way.

Referring still to FIG. 3, the illustrative wireless network interface306 may have a limited distance over which communication may take place.The range over which communication may take place need not extend beyondthe inside of the vehicle 114, where the onboard devices are located.The protocol over which the wireless network interface 306 communicatesmay likewise take many forms. In one embodiment, the wireless networkinterface 306 implements a radio frequency (RF) communication protocol(i.e., radio frequency communication by way of electromagnetic wavespropagating through the air). For example, the communication may beimplemented by way of ZIGBEE® brand network protocols, where the ZIGBEE®trademark is owned by Zigbee Alliance; or a Bluetooth communicationprotocol.

In another embodiment, communication between the onboard devices 116 and118 is audible, sub-audible, or super-audible. For example, a microphone308 (illustratively shown as part of onboard device 118) may couple toone or either of the onboard devices and receive an acoustic signalemitted from the other onboard device, such as speaker 204 (illustrativeshown as part of onboard device 116) which can be recognized andanalyzed by computer systems based on frequencies above, below, andwithin the audible range. In yet another embodiment, the two onboarddevices may be connected by way of a hardwired connection (e.g., anEthernet network).

Regardless of how the onboard devices communicate with each other,communication between the two devices may be indicative of two operablesystems. In other words, as long as the devices are communicating witheach other, there will be no alert sent related to suspected tampering.

If a driver tampers with one of the onboard devices, such as by removingthe device, and thus breaks or severs the communication between onboarddevices 116 and 118, the system may recognize that one or both of theonboard devices has been tampered with, and one of the onboard devices,such as onboard device 118, may send an indication of the last knownlocation of vehicle 114 to the operations center 100 or to a thirdparty, such as administrative agent 106. The indication of last knownlocation may double as both an indication of tampering, and also as away to aid the lending institution or third party in locating thevehicle.

Furthermore, onboard device 116 may be, in part, a starter relayreplacement device, and thus may act as an operational starter relaywhen the onboard device 118 is communicatively coupled with onboarddevice 116. In the event communication is lost with the onboard device118, the onboard device 116 may not provide current to the solenoid inspite of a command to do so, thus disabling the vehicle 114.

In one embodiment, severing the connection between the two onboarddevices may also sever the power to one or more of the onboard devices,making it difficult to send off an alert indicative of tampering or anindication of last known location. Thus, one or more of the onboarddevices 116 and 118 may be powered by a separate electric power supply206 and/or 310, respectively. For purposes of simplification, discussionon the electric power supply will be made with reference to onboarddevice 118 and electric power supply 310; however, electric power supply206 may be configured and may operate similarly.

Electric power supply 310 may be any device configurable for receivingand distributing electric power through the onboard device 118. Electricpower supply 310 may have wires or cables for connecting a source ofpower. Further, electric power supply may be a battery; capacitor;supercapacitor; a low-voltage shared bus bar; or other electric chargestorage device.

In one embodiment, electric power supply 310 is a supercapacitor. Inparticular, a supercapacitor may have a higher capacitance value perunit volume, with a capacitance value of up to 12,000 farads.Additionally, the supercapacitor may be able tolerate large numbers ofrapid charge and discharge cycles. In the event that another source ofelectric power to one or more of the onboard devices is cut off, thesupercapacitor may maintain enough voltage to send an alert to a thirdparty, either directly by way of wireless network 110, or by way of theoperations center 100, where, the alert may be an indication of lastknown location of the vehicle 114. Alternatively, for example, if poweris cut off from onboard device 116 due to being removed from ordisconnected from the vehicle 114, onboard device 116 may send a signalindicative of power loss (and thus potential tampering) to onboarddevice 118, requesting an alert be sent to the operations center or athird party. In order to reduce the amount of battery power needed forthe onboard devices to communicate with one another, or for the onboarddevices to communicate with remote locations, communications related tooperability may be sent at periodic, as opposed to continuous,intervals. For example, the onboard devices may communicate with eachother when the ignition system of the vehicle is activated. In anotherexample, the onboard devices may communicate with each other every hour.

In the above discussion, onboard device 116 is described as having thecapability to selectively disable the vehicle from a command issued fromthe operations center 100. Furthermore, onboard device 118 has beendescribed as having the capability to track the location of the vehiclethrough a plurality of location tracking devices and methods, as well ashaving the capability to send a last known location indication to athird party when communication with the onboard device 116 has beenbroken. In another embodiment, however, onboard device 116 may also havethe capability to track location, and send off a last known locationindication if tampering has occurred. Thus, in this alternativeembodiment, both onboard devices have the capability to send off alast-known indication of location if power to the other onboard devicehas been cut.

Although the above description has discussed ascertaining whethertampering has occurred between two communicatively coupled onboarddevices, any number of onboard devices may be contemplated. Furthermore,although the above discussion refers to at least two onboard devicescommunicatively coupled, it is also possible that two or more onboarddevices are coupled by a hardwire connection, such as electrical wiresor cables.

In at least one embodiment, onboard device 118 may have a cellulartransceiver 304 capable of communicating with the operations center 100over a cellular network. The cellular network may be wireless network110. The operations center 100 may send messages to onboard device 118through the wireless network 110. Onboard device 118 may send messagesto operations center 100 through the wireless network 110. The messagesmay be delivered via any method available to the wireless network 110,such as via phone call, text message, or data transmission capabilities.At least some embodiments may be capable of delivering the messagesusing one or more methods. Messages may be commands, status information,system updates, or any other information to be exchanged between theoperations center 100 and onboard device 118. Status information mayinclude the value of a timer 210 (described later herein), whether thevehicle 114 is currently being disabled by disablement system 208,location of the onboard device 118, whether the vehicle is currentlyactive (e.g., is the engine running), or other status or diagnosticinformation about the vehicle 114, onboard device 116, or onboard device118.

In one embodiment, onboard device 118 may use wireless network interface306 to communicate with onboard device 116 through wireless networkinterface 202. The operations center 100 and onboard device 116 may sendeach other messages via onboard device 118. In sending a message fromoperations center 100 to onboard device 116, the message may be sent viawireless network 110 to the cellular transceiver 304 of onboard device118, and onboard device 118 may then send the message (which may be amodified message or a relayed transmission of same message) to onboarddevice 116 via wireless network interface 306 and wireless networkinterface 202; while onboard device 116 may send a message to operationscenter 100 using the reverse path. The operations center 100 may send adisable command to onboard device 116 via onboard device 118. As aresult of receiving the disable command, onboard device 116 may causedisablement system 208 to disable the vehicle 114.

In at least some embodiments, onboard device 116 may include a timer210. The timer 210 may be implemented in software or hardware. The timer210 may be a fully or partially separate component of onboard device116. Alternatively, timer 210 may be included as part of computer system200 or disablement system 208. The timer 210 may be coupled todisablement system 208 and cause the disablement system 208 to disablevehicle 114 upon expiration of the timer 210. The timer 210 may be acountdown timer that periodically decrements a timer value and expiresupon reaching zero. Alternatively, the timer 210 may be a calendar- orclock-style timer, and expire at a particular date and/or time. Numerousother types of timers and variations thereof could be used as the timer210 in at least some embodiments. After expiration, the timer 210 may bereconfigured or reset, as described further below. Alternatively, thetimer 210 may be reconfigured or reset while performing its timing. Thismay increase or decrease the amount of time before expiring. In someembodiments, the timer 210 may be configured to expire after anyarbitrarily specified amount of time. In other embodiments, the timer210 may only be set to the same time period (e.g., it can only be set toexpire after 33 days). In yet other embodiments, the timer 210 may onlybe set to expire after one of a limited number of pre-set time periods(e.g., one of: 20 minutes, 1 hour, or 33 days). Alternatively, the timer210 could be included in onboard device 118, and the expiration of thetimer 210 communicated from onboard device 118 to onboard device 116through a message via wireless network interface 306 and wirelessnetwork interface 202.

In one embodiment, the operations center 100 may send a message toonboard device 116, where the message includes a timer command. Thetimer command may instruct onboard device 116 to reset the timer 210 toa default value (such as 33 days) or to set the timer 210 to a specificvalue. The specific value may be included in the same or a differentmessage.

In accordance with at least some of the embodiments, vehicle 114 may beoutfitted with onboard device 116 and onboard device 118. The vehicle114 may be sold to a customer. If certain conditions are met (e.g.,non-payment of a loan), the vehicle 114 may be disabled via thedisablement system 208. The location of the vehicle 114 may also betransmitted to the operations center 100. The vehicle may be disabled bythe expiration of a timer 210, due to a command from the operationscenter 100, or due to non-receipt of an operability signal (such as dueto tampering). In the case of a timer 210, the timer 210 may be set toexpire after 33 days. If conditions for continued operation of thevehicle 114 are met, the operations center 100 may send a command toonboard device 116 to reset the timer 210 to another 33 days. Dependingon the conditions for continued operation of the vehicle 114, the timer210 may be set to a longer or shorter duration of time. The operationscenter 100 could also set the timer 210 to some other duration, such asin the case of an emergency need to operate the vehicle 114.Alternatively, the operations center 100 may send a command to onboarddevice 116 to disable the vehicle 114. This may include setting thetimer 210 to a short duration (e.g., one second, one minute, or onehour). Alternatively, the timer 210 may also be set to a short durationif tampering is detected. In cases of tamper detection, the setting ofthe timer 210 may be prompted by onboard device 116, onboard device 118,or the operations center 100. Thus, in some embodiments, the vehicle 114may be disabled either due to a command from the operations center 100or by expiration of a timer 210.

FIG. 4 shows a computer system 400, which is illustrative of a computersystem upon which the various embodiments may be practiced. The computersystem 400 may be illustrative of, for example, computer system 200coupled to the onboard device 116. In another embodiment, the computersystem 400 may be illustrative of, for example, computer system 300coupled to the onboard device 118. In yet another embodiment, computersystem 400 may be illustrative of processor 102. The computer system 400comprises a processor 402, and the processor couples to a main memory404 by way of a bridge device 406. Moreover, the processor 402 maycouple to a long term storage device 408 (e.g., a hard drive, solidstate disk, memory stick, optical disc) by way of the bridge device 406.Programs executable by the processor 402 may be stored on the storagedevice 408, and accessed when needed by the processor 402. The programstored on the storage device 408 may comprise programs to implement thevarious embodiments of the present specification, such as sending anindication of the last known location of vehicle 114 in the event ofdevice tampering. In some cases, the programs are copied from thestorage device 408 to the main memory 404, and the programs are executedfrom the main memory 404. Thus, the main memory 404, and storage device408 shall be considered computer-readable storage mediums.

A method of remote tamper detection will now be discussed in moredetail. FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram depicting an overall method ofdetecting whether tampering has occurred with respect to locationtracking and disablement devices. The method starts (block 500) byreceiving Global Positioning System (GPS) signals indicative of alocation, the receiving by a first device coupled to an asset (block502). The method moves to periodically sending a signal of operabilitybetween the first device and a second device, the second device coupledto the asset, and the second device configured to selectively disablethe asset (block 504); determining that receipt of the signal ofoperability has ceased (block 506); and issuing an indication of thelocation of the first device responsive to the determining that receiptof the signal of operability has ceased, the issuing from the firstdevice by a wireless transmission to a remote operations center (block508). Thereafter, the method ends (block 510).

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram depicting at least one embodiment of anoverall method of detecting whether tampering has occurred with respectto location tracking and disablement devices. The method starts (block600) by receiving signals indicative of a location (e.g., GPS signals),the receiving by a first device coupled to an asset (block 602). Asdiscussed elsewhere in this specification, the signals may be GPSsignals, wireless network signals, or cellular network signals. Themethod moves to periodically sending a signal of operability from thefirst device to a second device, the second device coupled to the asset,and the second device configured to selectively disable the asset (block604). In at least some embodiments, signals of operability may also besent from the second device to the first device. The signals ofoperability from the second device to the first device may or may not bewholly or partially independent of the signals of operability from thefirst device to the second device. The method moves to determining bythe second device whether receipt of the signal of operability hasceased (block 606). In at least some embodiments, the first device mayalso determine whether receipt of signals of operability have ceased.The method moves to receiving a first command by the first device from aremote operations center (block 608). The method moves to sending asecond command from the first device to the second device, responsive toreceiving the first command by the first device from the remoteoperations center (block 610). In at least some embodiments, the firstcommand is relayed to the second device through the first device. In atleast some embodiments, the second command is the same as the firstcommand. In at least some embodiments, the first command includes acommand for the first device and the same (or a different) command forthe second device. In at least some embodiments, a command received bythe first device may not result in sending a responsive command to thesecond device (e.g., the first device may be capable of handling thecommand itself). The method moves to disabling the asset by the seconddevice when (a) receipt of the signal of operability has ceased or (b)the second command is a disable command (block 612). In at least someembodiments, other conditions may additionally cause disabling of theasset. In at least some embodiments the second command is not a disablecommand. The method moves to issuing from the first device an indicationof location of the first device by wireless transmission from the firstdevice to the remote operations center (block 614). In at least someembodiments, the issuing of an indication of location occurs responsiveto disabling the asset. In at least some embodiments, the issuing of anindication of location occurs responsive to determining that receipt ofthe signal of operability has ceased. In at least some embodiments, theissuing of an indication of location occurs responsive to a command fromthe remote operations center. In at least some embodiments, the firstdevice may also send a message to the remote operations center. Themessage may include status information about the asset, the firstdevice, or the second device. In at least some embodiments, the issuingof an indication of the location of the first device may be performed bysending a message from the first device to the remote operations center.In at least some embodiments, the message may include an indication ofthe location of the first device as well as status information. In atleast some embodiments, the message may be sent responsive to activatingthe asset (e.g., turning the ignition). In at least some embodiments,the message may include information about a power source (e.g., abattery, supercapacitor, or other power source coupled to the firstdevice or second device), such as an amount of charge remaining.Thereafter, the method ends (block 616).

FIG. 7 shows a flow diagram depicting at least one embodiment of anoverall method of detecting whether tampering has occurred with respectto location tracking and disablement devices. The method starts (block700) by receiving signals indicative of a location (e.g., GPS signals),the receiving by a first device coupled to an asset (block 702). Asdiscussed elsewhere in this specification, the signals may be GPSsignals, wireless network signals, or cellular network signals. Themethod moves to periodically sending a signal of operability from thefirst device to a second device, the second device coupled to the asset,and the second device configured to selectively disable the asset (block704). In at least some embodiments, signals of operability may also besent from the second device to the first device. The signals ofoperability from the second device to the first device may or may not bewholly or partially independent of the signals of operability from thefirst device to the second device. The method moves to determining bythe second device whether receipt of the signal of operability hasceased (block 706). In at least some embodiments, the first device mayalso determine whether receipt of signals of operability have ceased.The method moves to running a timer on the second device (block 708).The method moves to disabling the asset by the second device when (a)receipt of the signal of operability has ceased or (b) the timer hasexpired (block 710). In at least some embodiments, other conditions mayadditionally cause disabling of the asset. In at least some embodiments,the timer expires by counting down to zero. The method moves to issuingfrom the first device an indication of location of the first device bywireless transmission from the first device to the remote operationscenter (block 712). In at least some embodiments, the issuing of anindication of location occurs responsive to disabling the asset. In atleast some embodiments, the issuing of an indication of location occursresponsive to determining that receipt of the signal of operability hasceased. In at least some embodiments, the issuing of an indication oflocation occurs responsive to the expiration of the timer. In at leastsome embodiments, the first device may receive a first command from aremote operations center. The first device may send a second command tothe second device, responsive to receiving the first command from theremote operations center. The value of the timer may be changed inresponse to receiving the second command. Thereafter, the method ends(block 714).

From the description provided herein, those skilled in the art arereadily able to combine software created as described with appropriategeneral-purpose or special-purpose computer hardware to create acomputer system and/or computer sub-components in accordance with thevarious embodiments, to create a computer system and/or computersub-components for carrying out the methods of the various embodimentsand/or to create a non-transitory computer-readable medium (i.e., not acarrier wave) that stores a software program to implement the methodaspects of the various embodiments.

References to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “some embodiments,”“various embodiments,” or the like indicate that a particular element orcharacteristic is included in at least one embodiment of the invention.Although the phrases may appear in various places, the phrases do notnecessarily refer to the same embodiment.

The above discussion is meant to be illustrative of the principles andvarious embodiments of the present invention. Numerous variations andmodifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once theabove disclosure is fully appreciated. For example, the variousembodiments have been described in terms of detecting tampering of aremote location tracking device. This context, however, shall not beread as a limitation as to the scope of one or more of the embodimentsdescribed—the same techniques may be used for other embodiments. It isintended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all suchvariations and modifications.

We claim:
 1. A method comprising: receiving signals indicative of alocation, the receiving by a first device coupled to an asset;periodically sending a signal of operability from the first device to asecond device, the second device coupled to the asset, and the seconddevice configured to selectively disable the asset; determining by thesecond device whether receipt of the signal of operability has ceased;receiving a first command from a remote operations center, the receivingby the first device; sending a second command from the first device tothe second device, wherein the second command is sent responsive to thereceiving of the first command; disabling the asset by the second devicewhen (a) receipt of the signal of operability has ceased or (b) thesecond command is a disable command; and issuing from the first devicean indication of the location of the first device, the issuing from thefirst device by a wireless transmission to the remote operations center.2. The method of claim 1 wherein the signals indicative of a locationcomprise GPS signals.
 3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:periodically sending a second signal of operability from the seconddevice to the first device; determining by the first device whetherreceipt of the second signal of operability has ceased; and wherein theissuing from the first device an indication of the location of the firstdevice occurs when receipt of the second signal of operability hasceased.
 4. The method of claim 1 further comprising: sending a messagefrom the first device to the remote operations center, wherein themessage includes status information about the asset.
 5. The method ofclaim 4 wherein the message is sent responsive to activating the asset.6. The method of claim 4 wherein the message includes an indication ofthe location of the first device.
 7. The method of claim 1 whereindisabling the asset by the second device further comprises disabling byway of at least one selected from the group consisting of: a starterinterrupt; a fuel pump relay disablement; or spark ignition systemdisablement.
 8. The method of claim 1 further comprising: sending amessage from the first device to the remote operations center, whereinthe message includes status information about the first device or seconddevice.
 9. The method of claim 8 wherein the status information includesinformation about a power source.
 10. A method comprising: receivingsignals indicative of a location, the receiving by a first devicecoupled to an asset; periodically sending a signal of operability fromthe first device to a second device, the second device coupled to theasset, and the second device configured to selectively disable theasset; determining by the second device whether receipt of the signal ofoperability has ceased; running a timer on the second device; disablingthe asset by the second device when (a) receipt of the signal ofoperability has ceased or (b) the timer has expired; and issuing fromthe first device an indication of the location of the first device, theissuing from the first device by a wireless transmission to a remoteoperations center.
 11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:receiving a first command from a remote operations center, the receivingby the first device; sending a second command from the first device tothe second device, wherein the second command is sent responsive to thereceiving of the first command; and changing the value of the timer inresponse to the receiving of the second command.
 12. The method of claim11 wherein the timer counts down to zero.
 13. The method of claim 11further comprising: periodically sending a second signal of operabilityfrom the second device to the first device; determining by the firstdevice whether receipt of the second signal of operability has ceased;and issuing from the first device a notification to the remoteoperations center when receipt of the second signal of operability hasceased.
 14. A system comprising: a first onboard device comprising: afirst processor; a cellular network interface coupled to the firstprocessor; a first wireless network interface coupled to the firstprocessor; a location determination device coupled to the firstprocessor; a first memory coupled to the first processor, the firstmemory storing a first program that, when executed by the firstprocessor, causes the first processor to: receive signals indicative ofa location of the first onboard device, the receipt by way of thelocation determination device; receive periodic signals of operabilityfrom a second onboard device; determine the signals of operability haveceased to be received; issue an indication of the location of the firstonboard device over the cellular network interface to a remoteoperations center, the issuance responsive to the determination that thesignals of operability have ceased to be received; receive a firstcommand from the remote operations center through the cellular networkinterface; and transmit a second command through the first wirelessnetwork interface to the second onboard device, wherein the secondcommand is transmitted responsive to the receiving of the first command;the second onboard device comprising: a second processor; a secondwireless network interface coupled to the second processor; a secondmemory coupled to the second processor, the second memory storing asecond program that, when executed by the second processor causes thesecond processor to: periodically issue the signals of operability tothe first onboard device; receive the second command through the secondwireless network interface; and disable the asset responsive to thesecond command.
 15. The system of claim 14 wherein the locationdetermination device includes a global positioning receiver.
 16. Thesystem of claim 14 wherein disabling the asset further comprisesdisabling the asset by way of: a starter interrupt; a fuel pump relaydisablement; or spark ignition system disablement.
 17. The system ofclaim 14 wherein the second onboard device further comprises: a timer;wherein the second program further causes the second processor todisable the asset on expiration of the timer.
 18. The system of claim 17wherein the timer includes a countdown timer.
 19. The system of claim 17wherein the second command includes: a timer command; wherein the secondprogram further causes the value of the timer to be changed responsiveto the timer command.
 20. The system of claim 14 wherein the secondcommand is a relayed transmission of the first command.
 21. The systemof claim 14 wherein the indication of the location of the first onboarddevice comprises a latitude and a longitude.